Initial thoughts from the Broncos’ 10-7 win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 10 at Empower Field:
1. Ugliest 8-2 ever?: No wonder Sean Payton circles restaurant parking lots. His Broncos are tops in the NFL when it comes to playing with their food. The defense was stout. The throwbacks were sweet. Everything else stunk from downtown to Greeley. Still, an ugly 8-2 beats a pretty 5-5, doesn’t it? And that 8-2 means something, historically. No Broncos team that opened 8-2 has won fewer than 11 games in the regular season. Of the four previous Denver squads to get there, three reached the Super Bowl (two of them lost it). The other made it to the AFC Championship game. Something wonderful is unfolding before our eyes. It’s just that it’s awfully hard to see it while we’re shielding them in pain.
Broncos grind out ugly, 10-7 win vs. Raiders for seventh straight victory
2. Zach Attack: Zach Allen has somehow never been voted to the Pro Bowl. If the football gods have any sense of justice, and they sometimes don't, the Broncos' veteran defensive lineman will be able to cross that one off his bucket list soon. Yes, the Raiders found themselves playing without their starting left tackle, left guard and right guard. But Allen was a one-man orange wrecking crew from the jump, collapsing the middle of the pocket on beleaguered Geno Smith while racking up a sack, three QB hits and a pass deflection. When it comes to dominant Denver defenses, the 2015 No-Fly Zone had a better secondary, head-to-head, than the 2025 Orange Rush. But this front seven is special.
3. Wind wasn't Crawshaw's problem: The breeze could be heard beating on the referees' field microphones. Funny how it didn't affect Raiders punter AJ Cole, though. Meanwhile, his Broncos contemporary, Jeremy Crawshaw, had the yips from the jump. With 7:07 left at his own 11, the rookie punter fired off a low line drive that veered out of bounds before midfield and only netted 30 yards. That gave the visitors the ball at the Denver 41 on their second possession. Crawshaw's second, third and fourth boots were only marginally less awful. And those positions made a difference -- three of the Broncos' first five possessions started within their own 20.
4. We'll always have halftime: The first three quarters were about as much fun as a root canal. Fortunately, you'll forget most of it. Those on hand, though, will almost certainly remember the "Tron"- style neon halftime show, performed to a darkened Empower Field. Broncos fans were given glow-in-the-dark orange bracelets for a pregame light show, turning down the lights -- including the ones in the press box. "Let's Glow Back" was the theme of the evening, matching the Broncos and Raiders' matching 1970s throwback uniform combos. Spooky? Not really. But apropos. And very cool.
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